Synopses & Reviews
Review
"Considered one of the finest authors now writing fiction in German, the Austrian novelist Thomas Bernhard has written a powerful evocative, and partially autobiographical novella. Using a number of themes and devices from Kafka and Mann, Bernard writes about two friends confined to a hospital: Wittgenstein's mad nephew Paul and himself. Through their relations the author bleakly explores various aspects of contemporary culture—not in the least the alienation of the artist himself." Reviewed by Daniel Weiss, Virginia Quarterly Review (Copyright 2006 Virginia Quarterly Review)